Never as we expected
by Sabercat22
Summary: Whether you grow up dreaming of being a hero, running your family business, bringing about equality for everyone, or just having some awesome adventures you expect things to go a certain way. However they never seem to do so. Even the simplest things can take what you thought was a certainty in life and put it on its head.
1. A Wilted Rose

**OK so this is a story idea I had while lying in bed not looking forward to work at 5:45 AM. To those who read this please understand this is my first attempt of writing literally anything since my state writing test my Sophomore year of high school 6 and a half years ago. This being said here is Chapter one.**

 **For those wondering this story starts in between Seasons one and two and will be an AU**

 **Obviously I don't own nor stand to profit from RWBY its characters or locations in anyway and RWBY is the property of Rooster Teeth Productions LLC.**

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Never as we expected

Chapter One: A Wilted Rose.

Ruby woke up groaning on a particularly difficult Monday morning and immediately noticed that she was the last of her team to wake up which was peculiar since she normally had to wake her team up. She next noticed the complete lack of energy she had at that time which was even more concerning because while it was a Monday she had double Combat Training with her team and was scheduled to spar against Nora which was something she always enjoyed. After getting changed into her school uniform her team and her went to breakfast where she grabbed hardly any food with nothing even the school's fantastic quadruple chocolate chip cookies didn't seem appetizing to her. She started guess she might be getting sick despite her strong immune system on top of her aura normally keeping her from getting sick. She made note to get some orange juice and try and get extra sleep for the next couple nights so Yang wouldn't try and make her go see a doctor (she doesn't like going to the Doctor's office or hospitals if she can avoid it to many unpleasant memories). As she got to the table her team and their friends in Team JNPR began discussing their sparring schedule which included a couple interesting matches including Weiss and Pyrrha and poor Jaune having to face Yang. While this was going on Ruby tried to eat her food but was having issues enjoying it which Yang seemed to notice.

"You feelin alright Rubes? You've hardly touched your food."

"Yeah I'm just a little tired and don't really have much appetite right now. I'm sure I'll be fine by lunch."

After everyone finished their breakfast they headed off to their first class which was Grimm Studies during which Professor Port "entertained" them with a story from his youth in which he claims to have thrown a Deathstalker into a Nevermore killing both while also fighting off a pack of Beowolves. During the story Ruby was having issues focusing and even staying awake which hadn't been an issue for her since her first day she attributed this to her not feeling well and attempted to get back to focusing. After Grimm Studies they all went to change into their combat uniforms of their double session of Combat Class with Ms. Goodwitch at this point Ruby was noticing that she had a slight shortness of breath from just walking up and down the stairs to her team's dorm. This of course concerned her because how could she fight Nora of all people if she could barely go up a few flights of stairs especially when her semblance is running really fast.

When Team RWBY made it to class Professor Goodwitch informed them that Ruby and Nora would be fighting first and that this fight would count towards their current rankings (Ruby being a very solid #5 in the standings with Nora being #6) so they should try their best. As she walked down to the arena she was again noticing that it was tiring her out far more than it should and she decided that the only way she could win was to do so quickly.

As the signal for Ruby and Nora to beginning fighting sounded Ruby took off in a full sprint activating her semblance and attempted to out maneuver the hammer wielder and as she appeared on the other side of Nora who hadn't noticed yet she started coughing uncontrollably giving away her position. As Nora turned around to bring her hammer down on the young girl in red she took off using her semblance again to try and escape the wrath of the ginger haired girl but as she was running she noticed herself slip out of her semblance and as she started to slow down and stop she lost consciousness and fell to the floor.

The next thing she knew she woke up with her team around her and her sister pulling her into a big hug. After Yang let go and Ruby she noticed she was in a hospital room with all kinds of machines hooked up to her. As she was beginning to get used to her surroundings a doctor came in and noticed she was awake.

"Ahh Miss Rose I see you've woken up. Good now we can begin running some tests so we can find out what caused you to lose consciousness during your spar earlier. First I need to ask you a few questions ok?"

"Uhh sure ok."

"Good now your sister said that you told her you felt a little tired earlier and your partner Miss Schnee mentioned you looking out of breath from a few flights of stairs so my question to you Miss Rose is are these common occurrences or something that is new to you?"

"Umm well I'll feel a little extra tired some mornings but nothing like this morning and as for feeling out of breath I don't even feel out of breath after my normal evening run so today has been really uncommon to me."

"Okay next question, have you been in contact with anyone that you know of with any sort of respiratory infection like the Flu or Bronchitis? Possibly even Tuberculosis?"

"Umm not that I'm aware of normally I just spend time with my team and even then I haven't noticed anyone around me looking or acting overly sick."

"Hmm interesting. If you don't mind, I'd like to run some blood tests and get an x-ray of your lungs just to check after that you're free to go and make sure you get plenty of rest. If we find anything in the tests, we'll call you."

"Ok that sounds fine."

After the doctor left a nurse came to take her to where she would be getting the x-rays done and then to where they would draw blood for the lab work then released her and reminded her to try and avoid any strenuous activity for a couple days even giving her a note to give to Ms. Goodwitch to excuse her from combat for a few days. After they got back to the room Yang and Weiss forced Ruby to take a shower then get into bed saying that she needed rest and to let them get her food. She agreed just so they'd stop badgering her and when they got back she saw that Weiss was even nice enough to get her some cookies. She thanked the duo and got to eating her dinner then decided to retire to bed hoping she would feel better when she woke up.

When Ruby woke up she felt even worse than when she had gone to bed. Not only was she completely exhausted but she was also having difficulty breathing even when just lying in bed. Realizing that she was going to have to get up and face her day anyway she got up to take a shower and in the shower started coughing. After showering she got dressed and her team and her where on their way to breakfast when she noticed her scroll began to go off when she looked at it she saw it was the hospital calling so she answered.

"Hello?"

"Yes hello is this Ruby Rose?"

"Yes, it is."

"Hello Miss Rose this is Dr. Forest from the Vale Kingdom Hospital we got your test results in and believe it would be best for you to come in as soon as you are available so we can go over them with you."

"Ok I'll head over after my classes get out today."

"Sounds good see you then."

After hanging up her scroll she decided to try and go about her day as best she could despite how she was feeling. After her classes Weiss said she would take Ruby to the doctor since Yang needed to focus on studying for a test in Dr. Oobleck's class. As they walked to the doctor Ruby started coughing heavily again and had to stop for a moment.

"Are you ok Ruby?"

"Yeah I'll be ok thanks for asking though."

"Ok well let's get to the hospital unless you need a minute to catch your breath."

"No its fine let's go."

After about ten more minutes the duo reached the hospital walked in and told the receptionist that they were here to see a Dr. Forest. The receptionist nodded signed them in and told them that the doctor would be right with them after a few minutes the doctor came to get Ruby and asked her to come speak with him inside his office and was sure to let Weiss know she was welcome to join them. As they walked into his office Dr. Forest waved towards some chairs opposite his desk and asked them to take a seat.

"Alright Miss Rose I have your results back from the lab work as well as your x-rays and while the blood work brought back little results we did notice something unusual in those results the largest of them being an increased amount of Tumor Markers in your blood while on its own this doesn't necessarily mean anything overly serious when we combine that with you x-rays and it looks quite troubling. When we looked at your x-rays we immediately found a few spots that while out of the ordinary aren't overly troubling usually the result of being around someone who smokes often or the result of direct exposure to dust which in your line of work is fairly common. However, when combined with the increased number of Tumor Markers in your blood it is extremely concerning."

"Ok so what does this mean doctor?"

"Miss Rose I hate that I have to say this and I don't want you to freak out when you hear this. Miss Rose you have lung cancer."

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 **Ok so this is going to be one of the main plot-lines to this story if not really the main plot point yeah other shit will happen and I'll do my best to make sure that the other stuff doesn't overwhelm this in anyway. I'm also going to do my best to try and keep this as non-depressing as I can when I have a main character with a life threatening disease. For those who read please leave a review both positive and negative they will be read and responded to. If you either enjoyed this or are willing to give me a shot at entertaining you, please follow or favorite the story.**


	2. Tending to the Garden

**First off I would like to thank everyone who followed or favorited this story I know that last chapter wasn't the best it could be and that I have some things to work on and plan on trying to improve every chapter. I will also be editing previous chapters to improve them as I can. Second I would love more feedback from those that read this I don't care if you tell me I'm the worst writer on the planet and that I should kill myself feedback even negative is how I know what to improve on. On a final note to anyone looking for some good fanfic look up the Dissonance Trilogy by TheLastSonata it's a great series of stories that just got finished up by a damn good writer. On a side note while I'm going to attempt to have regular updates to this story and any others I work on it won't always be possible due to the nature of my occupation so I ask anyone who does read this to bear with me on that I'll try to give everyone a heads up on when disruptions to updates will be.**

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Chapter 2: Tending to the Garden

"W-what? You mean cancer cancer? Like the kind that kills people? H-how can I have cancer I'm fifteen? I can't have cancer I'm going to become a Huntress they don't get cancer this can't be right."

"Miss Rose please calm down we caught your case incredibly early and with treatment there is a very high probability of you surviving but you are going to want to begin treatment immediately. As for your training to become a Huntress we have taken the liberty to inform Professor Ozpin of you condition so that he could begin to let your family know so that you all could make a combined decision on what will how this will be handled and how it will be paid for because while we want to give you the best chance at survival the costs of treatment are far too high for the hospital to administer for free. Now if you or Miss Schnee have any questions about the types of treatment we offer here I would be more than willing to answer them otherwise I will see you later today when we met with Professor Ozpin and your father to discuss treatment and payment options."

"I actually have a question about Ruby's condition Doctor. How could someone so young develop lung cancer?"

"Well Miss Schnee there is no such thing as being too young for cancer. I've seen children as young as three years old develop the disease however that is normally leukemia not lung cancer. As for how she developed it I would say that prolonged dust exposure could be a cause of this especially given her chosen career field and her rapid advancement into a prestigious academy such as Beacon."

When Weiss heard that Dust exposure may have been a contributing factor towards Ruby contracting cancer her mind instantly drifted back to when she and the younger girl had first met and how she was literally shaking the stuff in her face and how she should have known better given the facts she was forced to remember about Dust and its possible effects of people's health. She silently vowed to help Ruby with her illness an anyway she could and wouldn't rest until she had helped her beat the disease.

"Now unless either of you have any more questions I have another patient to see before we all meet with Professor Ozpin and Ruby's father."

"I don't have any what about you Weiss?"

The older girl just shook her head not trusting herself to speak at the moment. As they walked out of the hospital Weiss couldn't help but look at the young girl and wonder what was going on in her mind or how her sister would react to the news. Then she thought more about how Dust may have been a leading factor to her becoming ill and couldn't take the guilt.

"Ruby I'm sorry."

"Why? It's not like you caused this or anything."

"That's just it Ruby I may have the Doctor said that Dust exposure can lead to your disease and I'm the only one in our group of friends that uses dust on a regular basis. Hell when we first met I literally threw dust into your face and now you're sick and damn it it's all my fault and I can't handle it!"

After hearing this Ruby just stopped grabbed Weiss' hand and looked the white haired girl in the eyes.

"Weiss I don't blame you for this and neither should you for all we know the Dust had nothing to do with this not to mention the fact that you've literally saved my life with it on countless occasions and since it's key to your fighting style I'm sure you'll save my life with it again just know that even if it is the Dust that got me sick that I wouldn't trade it for anything because your ability to use Dust is what got you into Beacon and without it I wouldn't have my best friend or even be alive. Cancer is something I can survive impalement by the stinger of an Adult Deathstalker not so much so don't beat yourself up about this all it means is that I won't refill Myrtenaster for you anymore."

"Not that I'd let you anymore dolt. I suppose we need to get back and let your sister and Blake know about this however can we keep the Dust part of it to ourselves while you may be forgiving about it I doubt Yang will be and I'd rather not get punched through a wall if I can avoid it."

"Haha don't worry I'll keep you safe after all I can't have my partner in the hospital someone has to make sure I make my appointments on time and while Yang is generally good about being a mamabear she isn't great with time management or getting up early."

"Did you just refer to your sister as a mamabear? I won't lie Ruby that's kinda weird."

"Well yeah she's super protective of me and practically raised me. Plus, she has a thing for bears so she always called herself mamabear and I just rolled with it because it was easier then arguing with her. I also think it helped her deal with mom dying a little."

"That's fair I suppose anyway we need to get back so that the 'mamabear' doesn't have a conniption fit about me keeping her little cub out too late."

"You're going to tease her about that aren't you?"

"Oh mercilessly. Unless you have any more embarrassing nicknames for her it never hurts to have too many."

"Oh I'm sure my daddy will use more than one when we meet with him Professor Ozpin and Dr. Forest later today just take it easy with them please I don't want to have to push you in a wheelchair to go to my appointments."

"Oh please I'm sure I can handle anything that brute can throw at me besides she can't hurt what she can't catch."

"Weiss she knows where you sleep."

"Touché."

The two continued making small talk until they arrived back at the academy where Yang met the at the docks and told them that Professor Ozpin wanted to meet them in one of the conference rooms in about an hour. They all took the time to go eat dinner (Weiss making Ruby actually eat healthy so she could keep her strength up) before heading off to the conference room. When they walked in they saw Professor Ozpin and Doctor Forest already talking with Ruby and Yang's dad who barely had time to register the doors open before a red blur was jumping in his arms yelling "Daddy" at the top of its lungs.

"Good to see you too Lil Red I see you brought Goldilocks with you."

"Ugh Dad you know I hate when you call me Goldilocks."

"Calm down there Firecracker you know it's a father's job to try and embarrass his daughters in front of their friends who by the way you have yet me introduce me to."

"Hello sir my Name is Weiss Schnee Ruby's partner. I would like to thank you for giving me more names to tease your oldest daughter with and for allowing Ruby to attend Beacon early despite being slightly immature and extremely hyper active she has proven to be a very loyal friend and talented fighter."

"I'm Blake Belladona Yang's partner and I would like to say that while Yang maybe loud and snores louder than a Bullhead she is also a very caring and protective friend who always tries to put a smile on all our faces. Even if it interrupts us trying to read."

"Well I'm glad that you both have such wonderful things to say about my daughters. I suppose I should introduce myself now I am Taiyang Xiao Long. Huntsman as well as Combat Arms instructor at Signal Academy."

"Yes well now that that's out of the way let me introduce myself so we may get started. I am Doctor Gerald Forest of the Vale Kingdom Hospital and I will be Miss Rose's resident physician during her treatments now I assume everyone here has been made aware of her condition?"

Upon seeing the puzzled looks on Tai's, Yang's, and Blake's faces he sighed and continued.

"Well the let me start from the beginning here. Yesterday Miss Rose was admitted into the hospital upon falling unconscious during a routine combat exercise during which time her sister Miss Xiao Long reported that she had been looking off for a few days and she had planned on forcing Miss Rose to come see a doctor at the end of class that day. Miss Schnee also said that she had been looking out of breath earlier in the day which was unusual given Miss Rose's semblance as well as advanced training. As such I decided to run both blood tests to look for antibodies as well as signs of viral infection and have her get her lungs x-rayed to look for signs of TB or Bronchitis. The results we got back showed that her blood had increased levels of tumor markers and that her lungs showed tumor like spots in them all of which pointed me to the rather severe and unfortunate diagnosis that Miss Rose has lung cancer. We are here in this room to discuss Miss Rose's future at Beacon as well as how we will go about treating her and how said treatment will be paid for. Now for her being at Beacon I would advise against it just because her being in close proximity to so many people while having a lowered immune system will only cause her further problems that being said she will need to be somewhere in the kingdom so that she can more easily get to her appointments."

"NO! I want to stay at Beacon with my friends I don't care about getting sick from other people I'm sick already besides Daddy doesn't live in Vale he lives on Patch so there isn't anywhere else for me to stay in the kingdom."

"Sweetie I understand you want to stay with your friends but if it will help you to leave Beacon then I'll do everything I can to get you a hotel near the hospital and I'll take time off of work to take you to your appointments."

"No dad if Ruby leaves Beacon then so do I. I won't let anyone even you take my baby sister away from me."

"Yang this isn't about what any of us want this is about what is best for your sister's health. I understand you want to keep her safe but at the same time I won't let you sacrifice your dream to do so."

"Then let me stay in Beacon. You won't have to take off of work Yang won't have to leave Beacon and I'll have my friends here to support me. I've wanted to come to this school since I was a little girl hearing about you and Mama going here and all the crazy adventures you had don't make me leave it all behind for this. If things get really bad, then I'll leave but while I can still somewhat manage this let me stay Beacon's my home now and I have my sister and two best friends to help me."

"Sweetie this isn't just our choice we need to let Ozpin speak as well."

"Tai I see no reason to pull your daughter out of class just yet especially if she is so adamant against doing so. I believe that she should be where she is comfortable and if that means a dorm room with three other students then so be it."

After hearing the professor speak Ruby turned towards her father and proceeded to put on her best puppy dog face.

"See daddy even Professor Ozpin says it's a good idea. Please daddy?"

Looking into his daughter's eyes he found only defeat and so Tai quickly submitted.

"Alright fine you can stay here for now. But at the first sign of things getting worse or the first time you miss an appointment I'm pulling you out and getting us a hotel near the hospital understand."

"Yes daddy and don't worry about me missing appointments I was made team leader for a reason I can manage a schedule. Plus, I have Weiss here to remind me in case I forget right Weiss?

"Of course I won't let you be late for class I'm not about to let you miss an appointment that could save your life."

"See? I won't miss an appointment cause Weiss wouldn't let me!"

"Anyway now that we have Miss Rose's living situation settled there is still the treatment to discuss. Now since it is in her lungs we can't remove the tumors via surgery and given the proximity to the heart and digestive system I don't recommend using radiation either. This generally just leaves Chemotherapy as the only traditional treatment method. As for how we would go about administering the Chemotherapy I would recommend doing four three week cycles with four weeks in between cycles."

"What does that exactly mean Doc? Like what is this gonna do to my baby sister?"

"Well Miss Xiao Long your sister will come in every three days to receive a dose of a drug called Methotrexate LPF via IV for three weeks then after the three weeks she will receive four weeks to recover. This will repeat four times unless she either enters remission during that time or we see that her condition worsens to be clear even during we recovery periods she will still need to come in for weekly check ups. I am recommending this particular drug for the reason of it is less damaging than other chemotherapy drugs making it a good starting point for her to begin treatments with."

"What kind of side effects can we expect from these treatments just so I know what to look for since I sleep right under her?"

"Well Miss Schnee she will be more tired and will frequently be nauseous especially on days she has received treatments there is also the common side effect of her losing her which can be a cause for distress among a lot of patients. I will be providing a suggested meal plan for the treatments however given that she will be staying in a school and won't always be able to follow the meal plan I would recommend that she eat as healthy as possible and get plenty of rest. I would also recommend she stop all combat related activities as the Chemo will lower her immune system as well as her aura levels."

"Alright I can arrange for her to be exempt for combat class as well as one of her teammates to accompany her during her appointments. I will leave them in charge of who should go with her and for the two remaining team members to inform the Professors of their absence on those days. Now is there anymore we need to discuss?"

"Yes Professor we need to discuss how this will all be paid for. Not to sound heartless but these treatments aren't cheap and the hospital won't give them out for free."

"We understand Doctor. Oz is there any way you can throw me some missions preferably safe high paying ones?"

"No need sir I am the Heiress of the largest Dust corporation on Remnant paying for this shouldn't be difficult."

"While I'm sure Tai appreciates the sentiment I doubt your father would be willing to pay for some girl he's never met's cancer treatments out of the kindness of his heart. If I know Siliber Schnee and unfortunately I do he would require a very large amount of leverage in order to pay for this. However just because he won't doesn't mean I won't consider the treatments paid for as a gift from Beacon Academy to one of its most promising first years as well as one last gift to the best student to ever leave these halls."

"Oz I can't thank you enough for not only allowing Ruby to attend Beacon early of all things but then being so accommodating of her with her illness but then to pay for it as well… Summer was right to let you take over as Headmaster instead of her."

"Yes well it is the least I can do need I remind you of all the times she saved my life. Anyway I believe that we were in the middle of something is there anything else you need from us Doctor?"

"No this should be all. I'll contact you as well as Miss Rose about the time and date of her first treatment if any of you come up with any questions or notice any severe reactions our worsening of symptoms here is my number don't hesitate to call me now I wish you all a lovely day."

And with that Doctor Forest walked out of the conference room and headed to his home.

"Ahh yes now I believe you girls should be heading to your room now some of you still have homework to do isn't that right Miss Xiao Long?"

"Wait how did? Ugh yeah ok let's go."

"I suppose you want me to hang around Oz?"

"If only for a moment I have a couple things I wish to discuss with you about a mission I may have for you. You would be working with Qrow."

"Say no more if it involves Qrow I know it's important. I'll do it just send me the details oh and keep me informed with Ruby I know this is important and all but I still have to at least appear like a responsible father."

"Of course old friend."

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 **Ok so holy shit I never thought I'd do this much research into cancer for anything let alone a fanfic. Also if I fuck anything up and you know better call me the fuck out on it please. Anyway yeah review please positive or negative I don't care I just want some feedback. If you don't wanna drop a review so you could always shoot me a message trust me I won't be upset. As for anyone wondering about where I got mamabear from no it wasn't a Goldilocks and the three bears thing it's what I always called my pseudo adoptive mama cause she always referred to me as her young cub. I just figured it kinda fit here and it gives Weiss some ammo against Yang which is fun.**

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 **First I would like to thank those that continue to give this a chance. Second I would like to apologize for my delay in getting new chapters out on this story but in my defense my life has been kind of hectic recently for instance shortly after last chapter I began a two week train up for EIB (Expert Infantryman Badge) then had the week long EIB Testing followed up with a two week long School of the Gun session to teach me how machine gun marksmanship then this week I had to go out and help with training drivers for our vehicles stacked up with live fire exercises all next week and then I'll be headed home for a brief visit for Thanksgiving and then more live fires when I get back leading into Christmas Leave. Somewhere in the next few weeks I do plan on getting another chapter out for this story and possibly the beginning of another one if time allows.**


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